Celebrate the Sochi Games in Lake Placid

Lake Placid, Adirondacks USA - The 2014 Olympic Winter Games will be staged in Sochi, Russia, but Lake Placid will celebrate its Olympic heritage in the Adirondacks this winter!

“We want to ensure that residents and visitors this January and February will be immersed in the incredible spirit of international competition that always permeates the atmosphere in Lake Placid,” said Lake Placid Mayor Craig Randall. “If you can’t be in Sochi, there’s no better place to be than two-time host Lake Placid during the Games!”

Recreational and competitive winter sports have long been associated with Lake Placid. This quaint Adirondack village hosted two Olympic Winter Games in 1932 and 1980, and the area's history as the nation’s first winter vacation destination actually spans over 100 years.

Lake Placid's winter sports history began with Melvil Dewey, owner of the Lake Placid Club, imported winter sports equipment to Lake Placid from Europe in the fall of 1904 and for the first ever winter season, opened the Club for lodging and outdoor recreation. An iconic American winter resort was thus born and still thrives today.

Lake Placid officials are pleased to announce a series of programs and events that celebrate the international spirit of the Olympic Winter Games and Lake Placid’s robust winter sports heritage leading up to, and during the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia.Visitors and residents are invited to participate in several programs that will take place in and around the village festively decorated in red, white and blue lights and celebratory banners.

1980 Winter Games Trivia Contest

The 1980 Winter Games Trivia Contest is a town-wide “scavenger hunt”, and a fun way to learn about Lake Placid’s winter sports heritage, to explore a variety of local businesses and organizations. With every interesting bit of trivia participants learn, they’ll also have the opportunity to enter to win valuable prizes!

Beginning in mid-January, 1980 Winter Games Facts will be distributed throughout Lake Placid. Game participants who find the Facts will also find an entry form at that location. The more facts a participant finds, the more chances they’ll have to win a whole list of prizes, including a Lake Placid ski getaway - complete with lodging at High Peaks Resort, lift tickets to Whiteface Mountain and an Olympic Passport.

Fact location hints will be promoted on Lake Placid’s social media channels, including @LakePlacidADK on Twitter and on Facebook at facebook.com/LakePlacidADK.

Olympic-themed events sampler:

January 17:The Winter Games Memories & Memorabilia community event will be held at the High Peaks Resort on January 17 from 5:30-9:30 pm. This festival-style event is free and open to the public, and will include storytelling from regional historians, and a public screening of a rare promotional film for the 1980 Olympic Winter Games in Lake Placid. The event will feature a showcase of 1980 Winter Games memorabilia, complete with “antiques roadshow”-style appraisers, documented by Mountain Lake PBS for an upcoming program to be aired shortly after the event.

Those with 1980 Games collectibles are encouraged to bring them to the event, and to contact Lori Fitzgerald at 518.523.4411 or via email at lfitzgerald@highpeaksresort.com for more information.

Feb. 7: The Lake Placid Center for the Arts will broadcast the grandeur of the 2014 Opening Ceremonies live on the Big Screen on February 7, free and open to the public. Tickets are available at $20 for an Olympic party which will be held in the upper lobby at the LPCA with food, drink and fun.

Feb. 7-April 6: The Lake Placid Center for the Arts will host an art exhibit celebrating the history and splendor of the games with Olympic Inspirations from February 7 to April 6. This one-of-a-kind exhibit features artwork created for and inspired by the 1932 and 1980 Olympics. There will also be a tribute to local Lake Placid Olympians and a celebration of the Paralympics. The public is invited to an opening reception Friday, February 7 from 5 PM to 7 PM. Winter gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday from 1 PM to 5 PM.

At the Olympic Sites

Olympic Athlete Trading Cards and athlete “photo ops”

Lake Placid (and the Adirondack region) breeds Olympians. Because of the locals’ access to the unique winter sport facilities and the the area’s heritage, Lake Placid has sent athletes to every single Olympic Winter Games since resident speed skater Charles Jewtraw won the very first gold medal at the very first Olympic Winter Games in Chamonix in 1924.

Seven local athletes who hope to compete in Sochi will be featured on collectible trading cards. Fans can collect these athlete cards by visiting the Olympic venues, and take their picture with life-sized cutouts of all seven of these local hopefuls:

•Lowell Bailey- at the Lake Placid Olympic Museum

•Tim Burke- at the OSC Cross-Country Center

•Annelies Cook- at the OSC Biathlon Center

•Billy Demong- at the Olympic Jumping Complex

•Peter Frenette- at the ORDA Store on Main St.

•Jamie Greubel- at the OSC Bobsled/Skeleton/Luge Track

•Andrew Weibrecht- at Whiteface Mountain

Winter Challenge

And, from February 7-23, families and friends can compete in some of the same winter sports that are being contested in Sochi. Families and friends canparticipate in the Winter Challenge, with special opportunities to earn prizes and create memories while sampling multiple events at the winter venues and keep track of team results on the special edition 2014 Winter Challenge score card. Olympic Sites Passports and score cards are available at any of the Olympic sites and at the Visitors Bureau Information Center in Lake Placid.